Gaborone, Botswana: Botswana’s youth are increasingly shaping the nation’s policy agenda, taking their rightful place as co-creators of development. At a High-Level Breakfast Meeting and Policy Dialogue held on Wednesday, 10th December 2025, at Hotel 4:30 in Gaborone, government officials, Members of Parliament, civil society organizations, and youth representatives came together under the theme Operationalization of the 2030 ESA Ministerial Commitment on Education, Health, and Well-Being of Adolescents and Young People, to strengthen youth involvement in national decision-making.
The event was convened to ensure that young people’s perspectives directly inform national policies, particularly on population dynamics, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), climate change, and broader human capital development.
Speaking at the gathering, Thatayaone Gabositwe, SAT Botswana Country Director, highlighted the challenges and opportunities posed by Botswana’s demographic trends. “We are seeing an increase in the numbers of young people, a youth bulge, but also an ageing population. Forty-seven per cent of this youthful population are not in education, employment, or training. Only seven per cent of women are similarly disengaged. We must ask ourselves: where are they, and what are they doing?”
Gabositwe underscored that meaningful youth participation in policymaking is essential for tackling these challenges. Through nationwide youth dialogues in remote areas, over 480 young people contributed recommendations that were later consolidated into two policy briefs for Parliament. “We took the challenge to engage young people, link them with subject matter experts, and conduct dialogues across the country. Their recommendations were consolidated into two policy briefs for Parliament,” Gabositwe said.
For her part, Tlangelani Shilubane-Pietersen, UNFPA Botswana Head of Office, stressed that investment in youth is central to Botswana’s future economic and social development. “Investing in our young people is not an expense. It is the most critical human capital investment for our future. Nearly one-third of the Eastern and Southern African population are adolescents and young people. Funding the demographic dividend requires urgent investment,” she said.
Shilubane-Pietersen called for coordinated multi-sectoral action, harmonized resources, and innovative financing to ensure youth access to SRHR services, education, and climate resilience programmes.
“We must ensure universal health coverage includes adolescent- and youth-friendly sexual reproductive health and rights. Let us join hands to eradicate fragmented approaches and dedicate innovative financing streams for a truly impactful and holistic future,” she added.
The Speaker of the National Assembly, Dithapelo Keorapetse, highlighted Parliament’s responsibility to act on youth recommendations. “Our young people are not merely beneficiaries of development; they are co-creators of the inclusive, knowledge-based society we aim to build. Nothing for us without us.”
Hon. Keorapetse pointed to ongoing challenges, including integration of HIV and ARV services, age-of-consent laws, child marriage legislation, and gender-based violence. He stressed that Parliament must ensure legislation, oversight, and resource allocation protect adolescents and young people.
Gabositwe emphasized Botswana’s human capital potential, noting that 62 percent of the population are youth, yet only 51 percent of their potential is currently utilized.
“To reap the rewards of this population, we must be deliberate about making the necessary investments. Human capital is knowledge, skills, and experience that people can use to realize their potential as productive members of society,” he said.
The dialogue shifted noticeably when the young participants themselves took the floor. Their interventions injected urgency, emotion and lived realities into the technical discussions.
Youth advocate Mpho Marunkwane challenged leaders to stop sidelining young voices, stressing that young people are problem-solvers, not decoration for policy events. “We have solutions, and we should be engaged,” she asserted. Marunkwane told MPs and policymakers that youth participation must be structured, consistent and linked directly to decision-making mechanisms, not treated as symbolic outreach.
Her message was reinforced by Leungo Sephiri, who offered a heartfelt plea from his rural upbringing in Kgalagadi. “Where I come from in Kgalagadi, we are battling many social ills: drug and substance abuse, and young people dropping out of school because schools are far from their homes. We are far from developments and services,” he said.
Mr. Sephiri expanded on the hardships faced by young people in remote areas: long distances to school, harsh weather conditions, limited access to health services, lack of youth-friendly facilities, and the isolation that pushes many young people into risky behaviour. His remarks resonated across the room, prompting acknowledgement from senior officials that rural youth need urgent, targeted interventions.
Their statements represented the broader experiences of more than 430 young people who participated in the nationwide dialogues. Their collective message was clear: policies cannot succeed unless young people are treated as genuine partners in shaping them.
